Jamdani Weaving of Burdwan, West Bengal

Originally made in karpas cotton cultivated on the banks of Brahmaputra, Contemporary Jamdani is worked on cotton, mulberry silk and cotton-silk. The vibrant rich colours of Jamdani are made through a tapestry technique. Small shuttles of coloured silk or cotton yarns are passed through the weft. Each individual motif was woven separately. The thread of the shuttle was left hanging at the back of the sari after the motif was done. This technique is therefore known as discontinuous weft. Hand weaving of Jamdani is a labour intensive process.